


Lost Cat, Fat.

by theweddingofthefoxes



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: M/M, Modern AU, cat shenanigans, meet cute
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-10
Updated: 2018-02-10
Packaged: 2019-03-16 09:41:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,592
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13633689
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theweddingofthefoxes/pseuds/theweddingofthefoxes
Summary: Hux decides to keep Millicent inside so she won't get any extra feedings. But someone else is looking for her, too.





	Lost Cat, Fat.

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Redleafmornings](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Redleafmornings/gifts).



Nothing was working. Not the diet cat food, not the toys that Millicent was supposed to chase to help her get more exercise, not the complete embargo on treats. Well--not _complete_. Hux wasn't that hard on her, and sometimes she meowed so sadly. That's what she was doing now, sitting on the windowsill, peering out into the night and most pitiful noises. 

It had been Hux's roommate Phasma who had suggested that maybe Millie was getting food elsewhere, and that's why none of his other efforts to get her to lose weight were making a difference. In the past few weeks, she'd gotten noticeably plump, and Hux was nervous about how suddenly it had happened. "We live in easy walking distance from at least four restaurants," she had told him, fixing a pot of beef stew for them to share. Millie had been winding around her legs, acting as though no one had ever fed her in her life. "She's probably using her outside time to dumpster dive."

Hux didn't like the thought of that. "What does she need in dumpsters?" 

"I dunno. Fish? Ham slices?"

"She never smells like trash, though."

"Well, maybe there are things lying out in easy reach. Or maybe someone is feeding her. If they think she's a stray."

"A stray?" Hux couldn't help but feel a prick of offense. He didn't spend so much time brushing her coat for someone to mistake her for a street cat. 

Phasma sighed. "I'm just throwing out theories, Armitage, I don't actually know. My point is that you should just quit letting her outside and see what happens."

So he did. Normally, after he ate his own dinner, a few meows would prompt him to open up the window by the balcony so she could hop outside and wander for a few hours. They technically lived on the second floor, but the first floor was a basement, and his balcony stood hardly three feet above the actual ground -- nothing for a cat. He had never really given it much thought before, but now...

Millicent batted the glass with one paw, letting out a particularly miserable meow. "Honey, we're going to stay inside tonight," he murmured, to no avail. What was she so eager to get to?

"Millie has a boyfriend," Phasma suggested from her spot on the couch, turning the TV up so she could hear Parks and Rec over Millicent's crying. 

"Or a girlfriend."

"That's true. Far be it from me to place heteronormative standards on your cat."

Eventually, she gave up, but she wouldn't come sit with Hux, either. _Whatever she's missing out on, she's really mad about it._ Was it another cat, or was it just the opportunity to get a second or third dinner? 

By the time a week had gone by, it did seem as though Millie was losing some weight, but she hadn't given up on her quest to get back outside. "You're not going to starve," Hux had promised her, when she tried to follow him onto the balcony while he was taking a minute to smoke a cigarette. "I'm sorry, kitty-kit." 

She sat in a miserable loaf, her face pressed up to the glass, never looking away from Hux as he smoked the guiltiest cigarette of his life.

Maybe a new toy would help, he thought. If he just went down to the pet store and found her something really great, maybe she'd cheer up and be occupied with something new. Phasma might roll her eyes if he came home with some giant cat tree, but at least Millie might be happy...

He fixed himself some lunch and browsed the pet store's website on his phone while he ate, looking for something that seemed promising. By the time he was ready to go, Millie had climbed into her bed (it was shaped like the cap of a toadstool, red with white polka dots, and she'd had it since she was a kitten) and seemed at ease. Perfect--she could wake up to a surprise. 

Outside, the sight of his neighbor affixing a sign reading LOST CAT to the neighborhood bulletin board caught Hux's eye. It was the guy who lived next door, whose balcony butted up to Hux's own. He'd lost a cat? Hux couldn't help but swerve off the path to his car, towards him.

"Hey," he started, trying to remember the guys' name. Ren, he was pretty sure. Maybe Ben. "Your cat's missing?"

The guy turned, nodding. He was tall and broad, his thick dark hair tied back in an itty-itty bun. "Yeah, she--she's an outdoor cat, but I haven't seen her...."

Hux frowned. If there were any other outdoor cats around, he was sure he'd know about it. Wouldn't Millicent have made friends? Or enemies? He glanced at the sign, which was handwritten in Sharpie:

_LOST CAT. Fat. Outdoor cat, female, orange. Call Ren at..._

It was like a switch flipped in Hux's head.

"Have you been missing her for a week?"

"A week exactly!" Ren said, shoving the other LOST CAT fliers into the backpack he was carrying. "Did you see her?"

"That's _my_ cat," Hux said, making no effort to hide his exasperation. "She lives next door. With me. Because she's fine."

Ren furrowed his brow. "But she's -- she would come to my house every day. For months."

"I stopped letting her out a week ago because she was getting--" He tapped the word 'fat' on the flier impatiently. "And she's fat because of _you_ , by the way. I didn't want her having a kitty heart attack."

"But she came to my house every day," Ren repeated, looking even more lost. Despite his irritation, Hux couldn't help but feel a little bit for him. Millie was a pretty affectionate cat, and it was hard to resist her charms. He'd feel pretty awful if someone tried to take her away too. 

"Well. She's still mine. Look." Hux pulled out his phone and scrolled through his photos. He knew it seemed a little bit like he was rubbing it in, but he wanted this guy to be really sure that he wasn't just a random cat thief. "I've had Millicent for five years, since she was a tiny kitten."

"You named her _Millicent_?"

"What's wrong with that?" Hux demanded, shoving his phone back in his pocket. 

Ren shrugged, tearing the LOST CAT flier off the bulletin board in one quick ferocious motion. "Dumb name," he mumbled, sour. "Just saying."

The guy turned, heading back to their building, and then Hux heard his own mouth call "Ren?" before he had actually thought about if he should say what he was thinking about saying. 

Ren turned. "Yeah?" 

"Look, if you promise not to feed her so much, I'll let her out again."

Ren said nothing, just surveyed him with those liquid dark eyes of his. Judging. Apparently Hux sounded sorry enough. "She always acts hungry."

"It's an act, I promise. I just--I worry about her. Being healthy, and stuff. I'm glad she's not out like, wandering in the road, though."

"She sits on my lap while I play Skyrim."

Hux smiled. "She's been missing you. Meowing to be let out....my roommate said she had a boyfriend."

"I mean, sure, let's go with that. I'm her boyfriend." Ren was making his way back over to Hux, so he didn't have to speak so loudly. "And you're like, the strict dad."

"Well, as long as you're going to take good care of her....Hey, look, I was actually on my way out to get her a toy or something. Because she was acting so weird once I started keeping her inside. Do you want to come with me? I'm going to the pet store at Silverpark Plaza."

"Well, I guess you'll want my input, huh?"

"Get something for your place, too. So she can play with it there."

"God, she's spoiled."

"And whose fault is that?"

"Both of ours," Ren laughed -- the first time Hux had seen him laugh, and god, that was a problem, it was too pretty. 

They started off talking about Millicent, but then moved on to other things -- work, and school, and what they planned to do over the summer. The sun gleamed on the dark of Ren's hair as they drove, and it seemed that his bitterness over 'losing' Millicent had fully drained away. By the time they pulled into the parking lot of the pet store, Hux felt safe in asking, "Well, after we're done...you know, Starbucks is just a few stores down, and I haven't had any coffee today--I don't know if you drink coffee or anything, but I could treat you to some--"

"You don't have to do that, really....but I don't have anywhere else to be right now." He gave Hux a mischievous look. "I'd blocked out the rest of the morning to look for my cat."

" _My_ cat will be pleased to see you, when I let her out." Hux pulled the keys from the ignition. "Or you can just, you know, come over when you feel like it."

"And see her?"

"And me, if you want."

It was a gamble, but there was hardly a moment to have to wait in terror to see if it had worked, because Ren unbuckled and opened up the car door, grinning. "And you. Which would like a lot." He climbed out, tapping on the top of the car. "Come on, then, let's go get that cat some toys."

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Kylux Valentine's everyone! I'm so excited to see all of the offerings! I hope you liked this one, and you can find me on Tumblr at [theweddingofthefoxes](http://theweddingofthefoxes.tumblr.com/).


End file.
